Improvement in water-wheels



ttiidi Sima @tutti (tfftt WILLIAM BLAKE, OE BUCHANAN, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR T0 HIMSELF AND CHARLES H. PARKTON, OE SAME IJLAGE.

Letters Patent No. 109,170, dated November'15, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN WATER-WHEELS.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making. part of the same.

specification.

My invention relates to that class ofvwater-wheels known as covered or turbine wheels; and

v The rst part of my invention consists .in providing an air-chamber in the body of the wheel, which serves as a buoy to. support -"a portion of the weight of the wheel, and thus reduce the friction on its bearings.

The second part of my invention relates to the manner in which the quantity of water admitted to the wheel is governed; and the objectof this part of my invention is to so conduct the water to the wheel as that a small quantity of water will 'give as good results in proportion to the quantity used as when a greater quantity of water is employed.

In the accompanying drawing- Figure 1 is a top view of the wheel. v

Figure 2 is a top view of the same, with the deck removed, showing the chutesand position of the buck-l ets.

Figure Sis a vertical transverse sectionl showing the interior of the wheel.

To enable others to make land use my invention, I

-willproceed to describe its' construction-and operation.

A represents the shaft-oi' the wheel, which should be of iron and substantially made.

B is an air-tight cylinder forming the body of the* wheel, and firmly attached to the lower end vofthe shaft A. To this cylinder a suitable number of buckets is attached. It will be seen that, as this air-tight cylinder is submerged, it will have a buoyancy nearly equal to the weight ot' water displaced by it, and, to av great extent, will reduce the friction on the bearings ot' theshaft A. The upper 'end o't this air-tight cylinderis formed concave ou the top, which prevents any contact with the deck of the wheel except at the periphery, which is beveled down to a thin edge, for the purpose of giving more space for the passage of water into chutes.

C represents lthe curb in which the wheel .runs. This' curb is introduced through'the bottom of the flume, and rests on the flange I). This flange is made sufficiently wide to receive the chutes a a a a.-

These chutes are iirmly attached to the fiange D at their lower edges, and conduct the water in a horizont-a1 direction aud nearly on a tangent line to the circle of the wheel.

E represents the .deck of the wheel. This deck is made of equal diameter with the flange D, and rests on the upper edges of the chutes a a a a, to all-or part of which it is attached in any suitable known manner, that may he readily detached for the purpose of removing the deck when required.

I1 represents the sleeve attachedto-thecenter of the deck, through which the shaft A passes. This sleeve projects above the deck, and forms a bearing for the traverse wheel Gr. This wheel rests on the deck, and is partially cogged ou one side, and meshes with the cogs of the pinion H. This pinion has a xed place on the deck E, and is attached to the shaft I( This shaft must be sufficiently long to reach above the surface of the water in which the wheel runs.

d ll d represent pins projecting from the upper surface of the traverse-wheel G to receive the slotted army'. These arms are attached at their outer ends to the pivots K K. To these pivots the shutters S S S are attached. The lower ends of these pivots pass loosely through the iiange I), and the upper end is supported by the deck E, forming a hinged attachment for the shutters S at the mouth of the chutes a. These shutters are made wedge-shaped, and set with their thin ends inward, so as to cucumber the waterpassages -aslittle as possible. y It will now be seen that if motion be given to p inion H that the wheel` G, arms j, and shutters S will move, thus opening or closing the water-passages to the wheel at will.

It will also be seen that as the jet of water is passing to the wheel it will receive its direction mainly from 4the longer surface or front of the chutesftasin that a small quantity of' water will be utilized as well as a greater quantity, a's Ain all cases the water will be thrown to the outer extremities o f the buckets T, or al1 the water may be shut from the wheel by turning the shutters in the position shown in dotted lines at R, iig. 2.f

I do not coniine'myselt to any particular form of buckets, but prefer that shown in dotted lines at-T.

Havingthus fully described my invention,

What I claim, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is y Y l. The air-tight cylinder having the concave top, as and for the purposes set -forth.

2. The combination of the air-tight cylinder with thc shaft A, buckets T, curb B, iiauge D, deck E, traverse-wheel G, chutes a, ,shutters S, pinion H, arms j, pivots K, and pinsd, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore set forth.

iVitnesses: -XVILLIAM BLAKE.

HORACE F. STRONG, WILLIAM G. BLrsH.' 

